William (Ned) Friedman
Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
University of Colorado
Home page for Darwinian Revolution, EBIO 4800/5800
Syllabus and links to all electronic forms of reading materials for the semester.
Links to details for all class assignments
Class attendance and assignments policy
Disabilities and religious observance accommodations
August 24
Course overview, introduction and organization
August 26
Topic: What is evolution? (What is science?)
Discussion
August 31
Topic: Natural theology and teleology; Discovering fossils, extinction, and progress
Read: Natural Theology, William Paley, chapters 1 - 6 (link)
Read: The Death of Adam, John C. Greene, chapters 3 and 4 (electronic reserve)
Discussion
September 2
Topic: The first evolutionists
Denis Diderot - student presentation (assignment information)
Erasmus Darwin - student presentation (assignment information)
Jean Baptiste Lamarck - student presentation (assignment information)
Read: The Growth of Biological Thought, Ernst Mayr, pages 343 - 362 (electronic reserve)
Read: Zoonomia, Erasmus Darwin, pages 545-558 (link)
Discussion
September 7
Topic: Unity of type - the debate
Robert Grant - student presentation (assignment information)
Etienne Geoffroy St. Hilaire - student presentation (assignment information)
Georges Cuvier - student presentation (assignment information)
Read: TBA
Discussion
September 9
Topic: Homology, comparative morphology, comparative embryology
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe - student presentation (assignment information)
Karl Ernst von Baer - student presentation (assignment information)
Richard Owen - student presentation (assignment information)
Read: TBA
Discussion
September 14
Topic: Botanical evolutionists
William Herbert - student presentation (assignment information)
Matthias Jakob Schleiden - student presentation (assignment information)
Charles Naudin - student presentation (assignment information)
Read: On the production of hybrid vegetables, William Herbert, pages 15 - 31 (link)
Discussion
September 16
Topic: Evolution outside the church: radical newspapers
William Chilton and Charles Southwell - student presentation (assignment information)
Herbert Spencer - student presentation (assignment information)
Read: Theory of regular gradation, Charles Southwell, numbers (parts) 1 - 6 (link)
Read: Lyell and Owen on development, Herbert Spencer (link)
Read: The development hypothesis, Herbert Spencer (link)
September 21
Topic: Evolution within the church(es)
Jean Baptiste d'Omalius d'Halloy - student presentation (assignment information)
Baden Powell - student presentation (assignment information)
Read: Philosophy of Creation, pages 314-481, Baden Powell (link)
Read: The Christian, footnote, pages 22-33, William Herbert (link)
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to essay (assignment information)
Discussion
September 23
Topic: Evolution permeates society
Read: Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation, chapter on General Considerations Respecting the Origin of the Animated Tribes (link)
Read: Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation, chapter on Particular Considerations Respecting the Origin of the Animated Tribes (link)
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to chapter (assignment information)
Discussion led by student
September 28
Topic: Evolution permeates society
Read: Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation, chapter on Hypothesis of the Development of the Vegetable and Animal Kingdoms (link)
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to chapter (assignment information)
Discussion led by student
September 30
Topic: Evolution permeates society
Read: Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation, chapter on Purpose and General Condition of the Animated Creation
Read: Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation, Note Conclusory (link)
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to chapter (assignment information)
Discussion led by student
October 5
Topic: Just before the Origin: Alfred Russel Wallace
Read: On the law which has regulated the introduction of new species, Alfred Russel Wallace (link)
Read: On the habits of the orang-utan of Borneo, Alfred Russel Wallace (link)
Read: On the natural history of the Aru Islands, Alfred Russel Wallace (link)
Read: Note on the theory of permanent and geographical varieties, Alfred Russel Wallace (link)
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student
October 7
Topic: Natural selection before Wallace and Darwin: Hutton, Wells, Matthew
Read: In retrospect, P. N. Pearson, Nature 425: 665 (link)
Read: The Principles of Knowledge, James Hutton (link to download word file)
Read: An account of a female of the white race of mankind, part of whose skin resembles that of a negro; with some observations of the causes of the differences in colour and form between the white and negro races of men, William Charles Wells (link)
Read: On Naval Timber and Arboriculture, Patrick Matthew, pages 361-369, 381-388 (link)
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student
October 12
Topic: Wallace and Darwin publish on natural selection
Read: On the tendencies of varieties to depart indefinitely from the original type; and on the perpetuation of varieties and species by natural means of selection, Alfred Russel Wallace and Charles Darwin (link)
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student
October 14
Topic: Darwin writes an abstract
Read: Darwin's Origin of Species: A Biography, Janet Browne, pages 1 - 83
Discussion led by student
October 19
Topic: Charles Darwin as historian - The Historical Sketch
Read: On the Origin of Species, Historical Sketch (from third English edition of On the Origin), pages xiii - xix (link)
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by Ned Friedman
October 21
Topic: Variation under domestication
Read: On the Origin of Species, chapter 1
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student
October 26
Topic: Variation under nature
Read: On the Origin of Species, chapter 2
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student (assignment information)
October 28
Topic: Struggle for existence
Read: On the Origin of Species, chapter 3
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student (assignment information)
November 2
Topic: Natural selection
Read: On the Origin of Species, chapter 4
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student (assignment information)
November 4
Discussion day
November 9
Topic: Laws of variation and the return of Lamarck
Read: On the Origin of Species, chapter 5
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student (assignment information)
November 11
Topic: Anticipating difficulties (Darwin's tactics)
Read: On the Origin of Species, chapter 6
Read: Darwin's Origin of Species: A Biography, Janet Browne, pages 84 - 117
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student (assignment information)
November 16
Topic: Instinct - the evolution of the mind
Read: On the Origin of Species, chapter 7
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student (assignment information)
November 18
Topic: Hybridism
Read: On the Origin of Species, chapter 8
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student (assignment information)
November 30
Topic: Geology and the fossil record
Read: On the Origin of Species, chapters 9 and 10
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student (assignment information)
December 2
Topic: Biogeography
Read: On the Origin of Species, chapters 11 and 12
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student (assignment information)
December 7
Topic: Morphology, embryology and the birth of evo-devo
Read: On the Origin of Species, chapter 13
Submit: One page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion led by student (assignment information)
December 9
Topic: Recapitulation and conclusion (discussion)
Read: On the Origin of Species, chapter 14
Read: Darwin's Origin of Species: A Biography, Janet Browne, pages 118 - 153
Submit: Three page (maximum) reaction to readings (assignment information)
Discussion
